Modular truss

ABSTRACT

A number of generally tri-lateral truss components or modules are interconnected with truss fasteners to construct a modular truss. Each tri-lateral member has three elongated chords, which may include first and second side chords and a base chord. Each chord has two opposing ends. A first end of the first chord is connected with a second end of the second chord, while a first end of the second chord is connected with a second end of the third chord, and a first end of the third chord is connected with a second end of the first chord. The three chords thereby define a generally tri-lateral member. A parallel chord truss may be built up of tri-lateral truss components by arranging a series of truss components in alternating upright and upside down orientations with adjacent side chords abutting one another. That is, a first truss component may be oriented in a first, upright position, while adjacent truss components are placed in an inverted, second, or upside down orientation. A built up truss is constructed by continuing this sequence of adding truss components. Alternatively, a triangular truss may be built up of the tri-lateral truss modules by orienting the truss components generally uniformly and stacking them upon one another in a pyramid.

CROSS-REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0001] This is a continuing non-provisional application of co-pendingU.S. Non-provisional patent application Ser. No. 09/256,670, entitledMODULAR TRUSS and filed on Feb. 2, 1999 by Michael J. Carr, nowabandoned, the disclosure of which is incorporated here by reference.

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

[0002] Not Applicable.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0003] The invention relates to structural trusses, and moreparticularly to modular trusses that are constructed of uniform,generally trilateral component members, to a pre-selected configuration.

[0004] Structural trusses are commonly used in buildings of all typesand sizes. Commercial buildings commonly use structural trusses tosupport roofs and floors. Structural trusses are also commonly used forthe roof support of a home. Parallel cord trusses are used in some homesas floor joists, which support floors. In either use, the trusses aretypically large built up beam elements that are frequently consideredover-size when loaded upon a truck and transported from a manufactureror fabricator to a construction site. Thus, the common structural trusscan present a transportation and delivery problem. Further, whenconsidering commercial construction projects, the size of structuraltrusses used can easily exceed those used in residential constructionprojects. One may, then, readily see that a modular approach to the useof structural trusses may provide transportation and handling advantagesover conventional structural trusses.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0005] A modular truss of the invention comprises a number of generallytri-lateral truss components that are interconnected with commonconstruction fasteners. Each tri-lateral member has first and secondelongated side chords and an elongated base chord. Each chord has twoopposing ends. A first end of the first side chord is connected with asecond end of the second side chord, while a first end of the secondside chord is connected with a second end of the base chord, and a firstend of the base chord is connected with a second end of the first chord.The three chords thereby define a generally tri-lateral member.

[0006] In one aspect of the invention a parallel chord truss may bebuilt up of generally tri-lateral truss components. This is accomplishedby arranging a series of truss components in alternating upright andupside down orientations with adjacent side chords abutting one another.That is, a first truss component may be oriented in a first, uprightposition. A second truss component is placed adjacent the first and inan inverted, second, or upside down orientation. Thus, a side chord oneach of the first and second truss components will abut the side chordon the other of the first and second truss components. A third trusscomponent is then positioned in an upright orientation adjacent thesecond, inverted truss component, and the built up truss is constructedby continuing this sequence of adding truss components.

[0007] In another aspect of the invention, a triangular truss may bebuilt up of the generally trilateral truss components. To construct atriangular truss, the truss components are oriented uniformly andstacked upon one another in a pyramid.

[0008] These and other features, objects, and benefits of the inventionwill be recognized by one having ordinary skill in the art and by thosewho practice the invention, from this disclosure.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING

[0009]FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view, showing a number of trusscomponents according to the invention;

[0010]FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a triangular chord truss that isbuilt up of three truss components according to the invention;

[0011]FIG. 3 is a fragmentary side elevational view of a parallel chordtruss that is built up of a series of truss components in alternatingorientation according to the invention; and

[0012]FIG. 4 is a fragmentary side elevational view of a parallel chordtruss that is built up of an alternative assembly of a series of trusscomponents in alternating orientation according to the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0013] A preferred embodiment of a modular truss system according to theinvention is generally shown in the drawing figures and discussed below.The system of the invention comprises a number of truss components ormodules 10 and a number of fasteners that interconnect the trusscomponents. More specifically, each truss component 10 may be atriangular or tri-lateral member having first and second elongated sidechord 12 and 14, respectively, and an elongated base or third chord 16.Each of the chords 12, 14, and 16 may alternatively be referred to as amember, an element, or a stick, for example. They are perhaps mostaccurately considered chords, however. One having ordinary skill in theart understands that the term “chord” is a fundamental term of thestructural art. Most commonly, a chord is a slender structural memberthat extends along a line between two terminal points. As such, while achord will have a given section modulus, a chord is substantially a onedimensional element, namely, an element of length.

[0014] One having ordinary skill in the art also understands thatbuilding construction presently draws substantially from three distinctapproaches or genre, including block construction, stick builtconstruction, and stress skin construction. Block construction was usedextensively in early history as is demonstrated in the pyramids of Egyptand central America, the castles of Europe, and in various structure ofthe Greek and the Roman empires, for example. Contemporary blockconstruction is substantially practiced by masons in the forms of pouredin place concrete and pre-cast concrete, including concrete and cinderblock walls, for example. In a very elementary imagery, Lego™ and Duplo™building blocks and Lincoln Log™ are block-type construction toys.

[0015] Stick built construction is equally old and is presently the mostpopular method of construction in the United States. Stick builtconstruction is evident in commercial construction in which steel postsand beams define a skeletal frame on which an exterior decorativeweather barrier or sheathing is hung, which supports floor structures,and which supports interior stud framed partitions or walls. Whileresidential building construction may imitate the commercial buildingand will commonly use wood in place of steel, the clearly dominate homeconstruction remains stick built frame construction. Frame constructionuses dimensional lumber sticks, including two by fours, two by sixes,two by eights, and so on, that are skillfully combined into a structure.Most commonly, two by four or two by six sticks are framed as studs in aso called stud wall. Substantially non-structural sheathing, includingfoam board, is commonly used as an exterior thermal barrier on the studwalls. Another substantially non-structural sheathing, typically drywall board, is commonly used to cover or close interior partition walls.Thus, the essential structural elements in stick built construction arethe sticks, the posts, the beams, the studs, and ergo the name stickbuilt. The sheathing is substantially non-structural and provides otherpurposes, including thermal, sound, and visual barriers, for example. Anelementary imagery of stick construction may be had with Tinker Toy™ andK'nex™ stick and fastener building sets.

[0016] Stress skin construction essentially uses structural panels thatare interconnected. Stress skin panels integrate structure and sheathingin one module. Stress skin construction may be considered a generallymore sophisticated construction approach. An advantage of stress skinconstruction is an efficiency of materials in that the materials moreequally serve multiple uses, structural and thermal, for example, notprimarily just one task. On the other hand, while block and stickconstructions naturally lend themselves to “one off” or custom building,stress skin construction may be best effected with an accumulation ofresources and a mass production of building. Alternatively, efficientstress skin construction may impose a conformity of building to astandardized stress skin module. An elementary imagery of stress skinconstruction is a house of playing cards, although this belies thestructural integrity of stress skin construction unless the cards aresecurely interconnected.

[0017] One having ordinary skill in the art understands the inherentdifferences and the interactions and interrelations of thesefundamentally different building methods. Thus, while one or anothermethod may be effectively substituted regarding a given structural task,and the methods may be combined to accomplish a desired structure, thesebuilding methods are fundamentally different.

[0018] Each of the side 12, 14 and the base 16 chords has two opposingends and are interconnected at the ends. A first end of the first sidechord 12 is connected with a second end of the second side chord 14,while a first end of the second side chord is connected with a secondend of the base chord 16, and a first end of the base chord is connectedwith a second end of the first side chord. Thus, the chords or elements12, 14, and 16 are interconnected and inherently define a generallyplanar, that is substantially two-dimensional, triangular truss module10.

[0019] One having ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that each ofthe chords 12, 14, and 16 inherently has two opposing ends and has alength that extends between the two opposing ends, and that the lengthextends along a line. Further, each chord 12, 14, and 16 has a widththat extends perpendicular to the length and has a depth that extendsperpendicular to the length and to the width. And further, the width andthe depth are negligible and essentially exist only as required by apredetermined section modulus that is defined according to a preselectedstructural loading of each stick 12, 14, and 16. It also noted that thetruss module 10 has a length that generally coincides with the length ofthe base chord 16.

[0020] While the ends of the various chords may be connected in asharply pointed apex configuration, they are more preferably connectedto define a flat surface apex, as is generally shown in the drawingfigures. More specifically, flat surfaces 22 and 24 are defined atopposing ends of base chord 16. The surfaces 22 and 24 are also orientedgenerally perpendicular to the line of the base chord 16. The sidechords 12 and 14 are connected to define a flat surface 26 that isgenerally parallel with the base chord 16.

[0021] Each truss component 10 may be constructed of any suitablestructural material by any method that is appropriate to the materialchosen. In one form, the chords 12, 14 and 16 may be rolled or extrudedchannel metal or plastic members that are riveted, glued, or weldedtogether, for example. The chords 12, 14 and 16 may also be tubularmembers that are interconnected according to their fabrication material,as will be understood by one having ordinary skill in the art. Inanother form, the chords 12, 14 and 16 may be lengths of dimensionallumber that are interconnected with nailing plates as is commonly knownfor conventional, open web trusses, or are interconnected with adhesivesis commonly known for engineered wood elements, for example. Oneconfiguration of a fabricated wood element may include withoutlimitation a triangular web port, which may be cut from a sheet ofplywood, and a perimeter flange. In yet another form, the tri-lateraltruss component 10 may be a one piece molded member. Of course, onehaving ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that these examples arenot limiting and that a truss component 10 may be constructed in manyother ways and of many other structural materials.

[0022] In use, any number of truss components may be interconnected tobuild up a larger structural truss member. For example, a smalltriangular truss (FIG. 2) may be built up of three truss components 10that are uniformly oriented, with a length of each module 10 aligned andeach module extending in the same general direction. Put another way,the base chords 16 are generally parallel and the truss modules 10extend in the same general direction from their respective base chordelement 16. The surfaces 22 and 24 of adjacent truss components 10 areabutted together, as shown in the lower or first tier of trilateralmembers 10 in drawing FIG. 2. The base chords 16 of the upper or secondtier of tri-lateral members 10 rests upon and abuts the surfaces 26 ofthe lower or first tier truss components 10. The resulting built uptriangular truss has a length or span that extends at least between apair of supports as is schematically shown by reaction forces R1 and R2(FIG. 2). One having ordinary skill in the art will understand that alarger triangular truss may be built up with the use of more trusscomponents 10 that are also uniformly oriented and connected together.

[0023] The generally tri-lateral truss component members 10 areinterconnected with fasteners that are suitable to the construction ofthe truss components used. Welding or riveting would be appropriate fortruss components that are constructed of extruded or rolled channel, forexample. Alternatively, nailing or gluing may be appropriate for wood orplastic truss components 10, for example. Thus, specific fasteners arenot shown. Rather, the likely areas where commonly known and suitablefasteners are expected to be used to interconnect the several componentmembers or modules 10 are generally indicated in the drawing figureswith the reference number 30.

[0024] In an alternative arrangement, a parallel chord truss may beconstructed of the generally trilateral truss component members 10 (FIG.3). By arranging a number of the truss components 10 in an alternatingorientation sequence, the base chords 16 of adjacent truss componentsdefine the opposing parallel chords of a parallel chord open web truss.More specifically, about half of the truss modules 10 are uniformlyoriented with their respective base chords 16 laying coaxially andextending along a first common reference line. This first about half ofthe truss components 10 have the surface 26 extending in a first givendirection relative to the third or base chords 16. The remaining orsecond about half of the truss modules 10 are uniformly oriented withtheir respective base chords 16 laying coaxially and extending along asecond common reference line. The first and second reference lines aregenerally parallel with one another. The second half of the trusscomponents 10 have the surface 26 extending in a second direction thatis generally opposite to the first direction. A deeper parallel cordtruss may be constructed by squeezing the truss components 10 togetherlengthwise, to abut the end surfaces 22 and 24 of adjacent and likeoriented truss members 10 (FIG. 4).

[0025] In a second alternative arrangement, a parallel chord truss mayalso be constructed of the generally tri-lateral truss component members10 by the arrangement of the modular truss members 10 as discussed aboveregarding the first arrangement for a triangular truss. That is, anumber of truss components 10 may be uniformly oriented, with theconnection between the first end of the first side chord and the secondend of the second side chord extending in a given direction relative tothe third or base chord, and interconnected to define a first tier. Thesurfaces 22 and 24 of adjacent truss components 10 are abutted together,as shown in the lower or first tier of tri-lateral members 10 in drawingFIG. 2.

[0026] A second tier, substantially the same as the first tier, may befabricated and connected to the first tier, with the base chords 16 ofthe upper or second tier of tri-lateral members 10 resting upon andabutting the surfaces 26 of the lower or first tier truss components 10.Thus, all of the modular truss components 10 are uniformly oriented,with the connection between the first end of the first side chord andthe second end of the second side chord extending in a given directionrelative to the third or base chord. To complete the built up truss, anelongated chord is connected to the second tier, with the elongatedchord abutting the surfaces 26 of the second truss components 10.

[0027] One having ordinary skill in the art and those who practice theinvention will understand from this disclosure that variousmodifications and improvements may be made without departing from thespirit of the disclosed inventive concept. One will also understand thatvarious relational terms, including left, right, front, back, top, andbottom, for example, are used in the detailed description of theinvention and in the claims only to convey relative positioning ofvarious elements of the claimed invention. The scope of protectionafforded is to be determined by the claims and by the breadth ofinterpretation allowed by law.

I claim:
 1. A modular truss system comprising: a number of sticks, eachstick having a length, the length extending between a stick first endand an opposing stick second end; a first grouping of three sticks, afirst stick of the first grouping of three sticks having a firstpredetermined length, a second stick of the first grouping of threesticks also having the first predetermined length, a third stick of thefirst grouping of three sticks having a second predetermined length, thefirst stick second end being connected with the second stick first end,the second stick second end being connected with the third stick firstend, and the third stick second end being connected with the first stickfirst end, whereby the first stick, the second stick and the third stickare combined and configure a first three sided polygon; a secondgrouping of three sticks, a first stick of the second grouping of threesticks also having the first predetermined length, a second stick of thesecond grouping of three sticks also having the first predeterminedlength, a third stick of the second grouping of three sticks also havingthe second predetermined length, the first stick second end beingconnected with the second stick first end, the second stick second endbeing connected with the third stick first end, and the third sticksecond end being connected with the first stick first end, whereby thefirst stick, the second stick and the third stick are combined andconfigure a second three sided polygon; and at least one fastener, thefastener interconnecting the first and the second three sided polygons,whereby the first and the second three sided polygons define at least aportion of a structural truss.
 2. The modular truss system defined inclaim 1 wherein each stick has a width, the width extending between astick first side and an opposing stick second side, the width alsoextending in a direction that is perpendicular to the length, whereineach stick has a depth, the depth extending between a stick top and anopposing stick bottom, the depth also extending in a direction that isperpendicular to the length and perpendicular to the width, and whereineach of the width and the depth are negligible in comparison to thelength, the width and the depth existing only as required by apredetermined section modulus, the section modulus being definedaccording to a preselected structural loading of each stick.
 3. Amodular truss system comprising: a number of truss components, eachtruss component being a generally planar tri-lateral member that hasfirst and second side chords and a base chord, each of the three chordshaving two opposing ends, a second end of the first side chord beingconnected with a first end of the second side chord, a second end of thesecond side chord being connected with a first end of the base chord, asecond end of the base chord being connected with a first end of thefirst side chord; and a number of fasteners at least one of thefasteners interconnecting a first and a second of the number of trusscomponents, whereby the first and the second truss components define atleast a portion of a structural truss
 4. The modular truss systemdefined in claim 3 wherein a plurality of the truss components areinterconnected with fasteners and form a structural truss, and whereineach truss component is oriented substantially the same with theconnection between the first side chord and the second side chordextending in a given direction relative to the base chord.
 5. Themodular truss system defined in claim 4 wherein the base chords aregenerally parallel with one another.
 6. The modular truss system definedin claim 3 wherein a plurality of the truss components areinterconnected with fasteners and form a structural truss; wherein afirst set of the truss components are arranged with the base chordsaligned generally collinearly and the connection between the first sidechord and the second side chord of each truss component extends in afirst direction, the first direction being generally perpendicular tothe base chords; and wherein a second set of the truss components arearranged with the base chords aligned generally collinearly and theconnection between the first side chord and the second side chord ofeach truss component extends in a second direction, the second directionbeing generally opposite to the first direction.
 7. The modular trusssystem defined in claim 6 wherein each of the first and the second setsof the truss components defines a series of peaks and valleys, andwherein the first and second sets of the truss components arealternatingly interposed between each other with the peaks of one set ofthe truss components nesting in the valleys of the other set of thetruss components.
 8. The modular truss system defined in claim 7 whereinthe base chords of the first set of the truss components and the basechords of the second set of the truss components are generally parallelwith one another.
 9. The modular truss system defined in claim 6 whereinthe base chords of the first set of the truss components and the basechords of the second set of the truss components are generally parallelwith one another.
 10. A structural truss comprising a number ofstructural truss modules and a plurality of fasteners, the fastenersinterconnecting the number of structural truss modules, each structuraltruss module having first, second, and third chords, each of the threechords having first and second opposing ends, the first chord second endbeing connected with the second chord first end, the second chord secondend being connected with the third chord first end, the third chordsecond end being connected with the first chord first end.
 11. Thestructural truss defined in claim 10 wherein each truss module isoriented substantially the same, with the connection between the firstchord and the second chord extending in a given direction relative tothe third chord.
 12. The structural truss defined in claim 11 whereinthe third chords are generally parallel with one another.
 13. Thestructural truss defined in claim 10 wherein a first set of the trussmodules are arranged with the base chords aligned generally collinearlyand the connection between the first side chord and the second sidechord of each truss module extends in a first direction, the firstdirection being generally perpendicular the base chords; wherein asecond set of the truss modules are arranged with the base chordsaligned generally collinearly and the connection between the first sidechord and the second side chord of each truss module extends in a seconddirection, the second direction being generally opposite to the firstdirection.
 14. The structural truss defined in claim 13 wherein each ofthe first and second sets of the truss modules defines a series of peaksand valleys, and wherein the first and second sets of the truss modulesare alternatingly interposed between each other with the peaks of oneset of the truss modules nesting in the valleys of the other set of thetruss modules.
 15. The structural truss defined in claim 14 wherein thebase chords of the first set of the truss modules and the base chords ofthe second set of the truss modules are generally parallel with oneanother.
 16. The structural truss defined in claim 13 wherein the basechords of the first set of the truss modules and the base chords of thesecond set of the truss modules are generally parallel with one another.